Caught In The Rain
by WiccadBaltane0501
Summary: Fall in Konoha brings the bone chilling fall rains. During a nasty storm Gaara shows up on Sakuras doorstep for a place to stay. She openly has him stay the night and gives him a hot shower and some dry clothes, and, much to her surprise, much, much more.


_**Before you read this little thing there is something that everyone must know. I have had writers block for the past few months and I know that's no type of apology to suffice so I will just say it; I am sorry. **_

_**In this particular story Sasuke is still an ass, but had returned shortly after he was "taken" by Orochimarus people and is still a member of Konoha. **_

_**Sakura is NOT still infatuated with him and she owns a small house with room for herself and a few guests. (she's so lonely now...*wink wink*)**_

_**Gaara is the Kazekage, before the demon extraction, and is still the awesome, most amazing, most bad ass, increadible, unbeatable, smart, strategic, genius!, SEXY, and most importantly; ….well you can figure that out by yourselves...(*wink wink*) **_

_**ENJOY!**_

_**Caught in the rain.**_

×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛× _**Chapter Start**_ ×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×

The harsh rain pounded against the windows of the house. It was dark outside, save for the streaks of blinding light as lightning sprinted across the sky. The outside air was frigid and unforgiving in the fall rainstorm. Winter was coming, the air was icy and crisp, and the whipping wind could cut a person to the bone. The dank lighting of the harsh outside world was contrasted warmly by the glow of the lamps in the house. The smell of warm tea filled the air as the pink haired medic leaned against the wooden frame of one of the large windows. She wrapped her arms around her and tried to convince her sweater to conceal just a little more heat then it was. She sighed, missing the heat and loving warmth of the sun. But at least rain was better then snow, right? Rain washed the earth, cleansed it of it's sins and faults, gave everything a chance to begin a new.

There was a slamming from upstairs and her peaceful inner rambling was interrupted by her new roommates stomping down the stairs. Once again she sighed, only this time with evident annoyance.

Sasuke strolled down the stairs and dragged his feet as he walked into the kitchen.

"You know Sasuke," she said, shoving back her annoyance. "Just because your apartment is undergoing an infestation problem dose not give you the right to stomp around my house like you own the place."

Sasuke pulled his brow together and stuck his head out of the refrigerator for a moment to shoot her a questioning look. "I thought you loved having me around."

"Yeah," she said turning to him. "When your not eating all my food and never giving me anything in return."

"What would I give you?" he asked defensively.

"Oh I don't know, money maybe. I can't support two people and my house on one income. I may have been trained by Tsunade, but I still had tuition on the side that I still have to pay off. I need some help here."

"I told you I would be gone in a few days," he said with a shake of the head and a smirk.

Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a shaky breath. This was the third time they had had the conversation about her tight money situation, and her patience with his lack of understanding was wearing thin. Unlike him she did not have a famous bloodline that everyone blindly put their trust in. She had to work for her skills and learn her trade, and that, in this economy, coasted money. Money that she, at the moment, did not have.

"That's what you said more then a few days ago."

"And? It's not like I can go back to my place."

"You staying here was only supposed to be temporary until you found a more stable place to go."

"And I'm working on it." He snorted and grabbed a bag of chips from her cupboard and stalked back upstairs, leaving the refrigerator door just a smidgen open. Sakura walked in the kitchen and closed it before looking in her cupboards to see this weeks damage. They were basically empty, almost barren. The only things left were those that took time to make; pasta, cake mixtures, bread mixtures, cans of sauces. She let her shoulders fall, why couldn't Naruto have taken him in?

What seemed like hours had passed, the rain was still going strong and showing no sighs of letting up, and the upstairs had fallen quiet. Sakura, thankful to have some peace with her tea and the sound of the rain, curled up on the sofa and settled in with some nice pillows. She had turned off her lamps and turned the heat down, taking every effort she could to save money. The pounding of the rain was monotonous and lulling to the ears as she closed her eyes and took a big whiff of her herbal tea. Feeling her nerves calm and her mind still she breathed out slowly, relaxing her body and letting the sound of the rain take effect. Sasuke had gone upstairs more then an hour ago and seemed to have fallen asleep since the noise from upstairs had grown quiet.

But once again, her peaceful thoughts were interrupted by a rapping at the front door. Jolting at the sudden loudness of the noise she quickly put down her tea and straightened her hair as she walked over to the door. Wondering who would be coming to see her, in weather like this no less, was a very intriguing thought to say the least.

She opened the door to find a man standing before her. His hands stuffed in the pockets of his coat and his cloths saggy and dripping on her doorstep. But that wasn't what caught her attention. It was the striking red hair. It fell just below his brow and covered the top half of his eyes as they looked intensely at her. Caught up in the rare and breathtaking color of the deep orbs she felt her breath catch in her throat as she lost herself in memory. It was the same intensity as back when they were kids, but now, something was different, more primal, but less savage. It was only then that she noticed just how badly he was shivering.

She took a double take at his miserable and dreary appearance before she realized that she had been standing there and keeping him out in the still pouring rain. "Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed as her medic side reared its head and forced her better instincts into gear. "Gaara come in! What on earth are you doing in the rain like that?" He briskly walked past her into the warmth of the house. He drew his hands from his pockets and ran them swiftly through his dripping hair. The saggy weight of his cloths made lifting his arms a bit more difficult and the bone chilling cold of the outside left him shuddering and caught off guard. The dripping of his soaked cloths was quickly making a puddle on the floor. He tried to even out his ragged breathing as he concentrated on quieting the chattering of his teeth.

Without even thinking Sakura moved to stand in front of him and immediately unzipped his stiff jacket and drew it from his shoulders with him, freezing as he was, all too eager to get it off. She quickly folded it and threw it over a chair before shoving his hair aside and feeling his forehead. His skin was ice cold but there was an underlying heat that was far to hot for her liking. She drew her brow and bit her lip, the gesture all to noticeable to the man before her. From the way he looked to her, he seemed to cold to even question what she was doing. She noticed that his clothing was very, very, unfit for the weather he had been caught in. His pants were thin but had absorbed the rain very well and were hanging off of his hips, the only thing keeping them in place was a belt. His shirt that he wore under his jacket was also thin and was a quarter sleeved with a wide neck; also soaked. His clothes were a dead give away that he was unprepared for the transition of desert heat to the fall rain.

She opened her lips to speak to him, to ask him what he was doing, where he was going, and why he was so far away from home and so unprepared, but there was a creek from upstairs and both their eyes darted to the ceiling. The dragging of feet was heard as Sasuke made his way downstairs. Sakura held up a finger indicated that Gaara should stay where he was and she rushed to the kitchen to meet the grouchy Sasuke.

He caught a glimpse of Gaara standing by the door and his eyes widened before he scowled.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"What is he doing here?" he demanded as he jabbed a finger in Gaara's direction. The gesture seemed to go unnoticed by the chilled red head as he continued to patiently wait for Sakura.

"He was caught in the rain," she tried to explain. He interrupted her.

"He needs to go somewhere else."

Saskura was taken aback by his blunt statement and stared wide eyed at him before her own temper ignited. "Why?" she spat.

"Because he's a monster who tried to kill us," he hissed under his breath. This statement, unlike the last, did not go unnoticed by Gaara. He perked his ears and listened as Sasuke spoke. "You should have left him the rain, would have done him some good."

"How the hell can you talk like that about the Kazekage?"

"Pft, that's a joke." He started to push his way past her into the living room but she pushed against his chest and shoved him back.

"And where do you think your going?" she demanded.

"To kick him out." His voice was agitated and snappy as he once again tried to move past her.

She was not having this. "He needs to get out of the rain and he's staying here," she said, making sure there was no room for argument.

"No," he said matching her tone. "He's not. He's leaving, now. I don't want him here."

Something inside her snapped as she finally, after the past two weeks he had been with her, reached her breaking point.

"Alright, you know what? I have just about had it with you! All you've done since you came here is eat my food, watch my T.V., never help me pay for anything, laze around all fucking day, act as if you run the place, and boss me around in my own home! Maybe being taken care of is new to you and your just indulging, but I will not stand for it anymore. I don't care what you think of Gaara, he made mistakes, we all do, there what make us human. Deal with it!"

"You can't talk to me like that-"

"Oh hell yes I can! This is my house! And in my house you live by my rules! If you don't like it then you can get the hell out before I kick you out!"

There was a controversy in his eyes and as he contemplated the decision. He snorted and stormed out of the house. The door slammed behind him and the two stood there in silence for a moment.

Sakura sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She really did hate yelling at him, but sometimes his head was just afar too thick for anything else. She hadn't realized that Gaara had moved until she felt his icy hand on her shoulder. She whipped around and tried her best to compose herself.

"Sakura I don't want to cause any problems for the two of you, he's right I should go."

"No, it's fine. It's like he's really living here or anything." Once again his ears perked at this and he waited for her to continue. "His apartment building has a bug problem and they asked everyone to leave while they take care of it. Naruto has an apartment too so Sasuke wouldn't have had any room so he moved in with me for the time being that's all. He's not the best when it comes to caring about the creature comforts of others."

"Well if it's okay with you then I would like to stay, at least until the rain stops."

"Oh of course, wait here, I'll be right back." She made her way through the kitchen and quickly walked up the stairs. He did as he was told and stood still, the frozen clothing still making his skin frigged, the weight of his clothing still causing his to slouch, and the water in his hair dripping down his forehead.

Sakura appeared back downstairs with a bundle of clothing in her arms along with a new looking towel.

"Here," she said handing them over to him. "The clothes belong to my cousins boyfriend, he left them here a few weeks ago when they came to visit and hasn't come by to pick them up. They should fit you I think. It will at least be something dry. If you want you can take a shower to warm up. It's at the end of the hall upstairs," she rambled, not really knowing what to say. It's not everyday that the Kazekage appears on your doorstep during a rainstorm needing proper care. He nodded and did his best to give her a small smile. Well, it was the thought that counted.

Even though her morality said no, the fact that she was a woman said yes. Her eyes wandered to his backside as his soggy pants fell dangerously low on his hips, and his shirt bunched and clung to his toned figure. Carrying around a guard filled with heavy sand must do wonders for creating a strong core and back. Probably never trained a day in his life for muscle building no doubt. Never the less, she shook the thought from her head.

Sakura waited as he walked up the stairs and disappeared into the upstairs hallway. She went to go sit back down on the couch and picked up her cup of tea. She too a sip and tried to push away the guilt of basically kicking Sasuke out of her house, but he kinda had it coming.

The sound of the shower had stopped and the only noise she could hear was the faint soft thumps of Gaara's bare feet against the upstairs floor. No stomping, no dragging, just quiet walking. She sighed. Peaceful. Thinking it would be a good idea to offer him some tea to hopefully help bring down that fever if the shower didn't do the trick she hopped up and walked towards the stairs. Figuring he'd be in the only available guest bedroom, the other being previously inhabited by Sasuke, she knocked twice before cracking the door open. She put a smile on and opened the door, it soon fell. She had chosen a very bad time. Gaara had put on his pants and was in the process of pulling on the shirt over his head, she subconsciously noticed the buckle to the pants was hanging loose and unbuckled and the zipper on the front of the jeans were yet to be zipped into place. Gaara turned his head to the side to look at her. Their eyes met for a brief moment and she quickly felt the heat of a blush creeping across her cheeks.

"Oh!" she said as she looked down to the ground. "I'm so sorry I-I didn't mean to, um," she trailed off.

"No it's fine," he said as pulled his shirt on, fully aware of Sakura as she stole another glance at him when she thought he wasn't looking.

"Uh, do you, uh, want some tea?" she tried. "Perhaps some coffee? Or something?"

He paused for a moment, taking in her blushed and flabbergasted face. He inwardly smirked, what people said about her was true. She did blush easily, and it was proving very, very, fun to be the cause of such things. This time the smile he tried on actually worked and proved to make Sakura's heart flutter at its gentleness. "That would be wonderful."

"O-okay, I will go and get that for you," she said choppily as she awkwardly made her way out of the door way. Walking briskly down the stairs she fumbled in the kitchen for a cup while he fallowed her with a leisurely stride in her wake. Leaning against the counter he looked around as the fumbled in the cupboards. She had a very nice house, it was well kept, clean, and ad plenty of room for herself and anyone who wanted to drop in for a visit. Apparently, he himself was now grouped with these people.

"Sakura," he said in a sigh. "Do you ever get lonely?" He tried as his mind swam with possible questions.

She thought for a moment and nodded. "I suppose I do." She said in a sweet voice, not at all cautious with sharing her personal life, she was very open with people and enjoyed a meaningful conversation from time to time. "It's a big house and I do live alone. What about you? Don't you ever get lonely?"

"I suppose I do," he said, mimicking the same tone that she had used. She couldn't help but smile at his small antics. "But running a village is quite different then I though it would be."

"Oh really?" she asked as she handed him his cup of tea. "How so?"

He took the cup and their fingers brushed for only a small second as he savored the feel of her smaller hands against his. Her hands were meant for healing, fixing, caring and restoring things to their right form. His were much different. Aside from being much larger then hers, his hands were also not as smooth but very rough after his years of controlling his hard and unforgiving element. His were meant to destroy, to kill, but also to protect with a force that was not to be trifled with. They were opposites, yet, her hands felt so different then the others he had encountered. More...innocent then his. Granted that after her years as a doctor she was not sheltered in the ways of how the body works, yet her appearance held an innocence that he had craved ever since his childhood. Something sweet, like a blissful ignorance. Or...something like that. It was far more hard to place then he had originally thought.

"Well in running a village you are constantly around people," he explained, his voice light and engaged. "It's much different then being a mission shinobi, you get to know your coworkers very well, although some of them I could do without."

Sakura laughed lightly at his expression of mock misery it the mention of these people, she too understanding all too well the annoyance of unwanted coworkers. "And just who are these people might I ask?"

"Councilmen. Some of them can be very generous when discussing plans for the future development of the village but others are blind to only what they want and nothing more."

"I see. They can be quite irritating sometimes I know..." Sakura bit her lip in the memory of her own run ins with the selfish type when discussing funding for the hospital. Once again Gaaras eyes fallowed her action.

Gaara eyed her curiously. She was more generous then expected in her hospitality and very open, so it seemed, with someone she very knew. A thought about testing the limits of that openness crossed his mind and his darker side decided to play a little game.

"Enough talk of them Sakura," he said interrupting her thoughts. He set his tea down and gently took her hand in his and pulled her out of the kitchen and into the living room. "I want to thank you for your hospitality and kindness even though my intrusion was rather untimely." Walking over to the couch, inwardly smirking as he could practically feel the blush on her face and the pulse in her wrist pick up and hop around. Sitting down on the couch he pulled her down to sit next to him.

Caught up in the unexpected contact and behavior Sakura tried desperately, but with no avail, to ride her cheeks of the heat they had obtained at his touch. "Well thank you Gaara," she said sweetly, trying to ignore the flicker in his eyes at the sound of his name and the way it stirred her insides. "But I assure you, working at a hospital like I do, generous hospitality comes naturally to me. It's not something I think about most of the time," she said with a nervous laugh. She looked down and her eyes fell to his pants. They were far too large for him, the heavy jean material hanging loosely off of his hips was only held in place by the belt. The image of his own jeans hanging low and heavy on his hips from earlier flooded her mind and she blushed once again. Embarrassed at the intensity of rate her face was betraying her she tried to play it off casually. "Do you think it's hot in here? I think it's hot in here."

"I think it's quite cold actually."

"Oh."

"Why? Are you hot?" he asked after a moment of silence.

"No, not really," she mumbled quietly.

Gaara looked down at her hands as they balled the hem of her shirt into her fist. Her knuckles where a very unhealthy shade of white and her fingers a ghostly pale. Reaching out he touched his fingers to hers and wrapped his hand around her smaller one before she could pull away. Warmth spread from her hands up her arms at the feel of his warm hands. Gaara ran his hands along hers and looked back up at her with a smirk, feeling her body heat up and the redness in her face come back once again.

"I beg to differ."

"Gaara, uh, um" she stumbled as she attempted to get her hands away from his, but his iron grip was impossible to move from.

"Yes?" he answered to her rambling, his voice low and smooth.

"Um, how long were planning on staying again?" she asked in a shaky and chopped voice.

"Until the rain stopped, why?"

Sakura stole a glance outside the window, the rain was still coming down hard and the forecast said to expect rain into the night. Her heart did flips in her chest and the idea of Gaara staying the night with her. "Well, you see the, uh, forecast said to expect rain into the night, and well, I was wondering when you had to be back home."

"I don't have to leave until two days from now. I still have to meet with Naruto. I just got here Sakura," he said with a smirk. "Don't you remember me telling you?"

"Oh, yeah I do." She tried once again to retreat her hands from his but every time she moved them his grip on them became stronger and seemed to pull her closer. "Could...I have my hands back please?" she asked in a sweet and innocent voice.

"No."

She starred at him for a moment at his blunt answer. "Why?"

"I very much like you hands, they're nice." His locked with hers and she felt her insides stir at the intensity of his eyes.

"Oh well that's...okay."

He drew his brow together at her statement that seemed to flow choppily from her lips as if she were uncertain on how to take the compliment. "Okay? It's a compliment Sakura."

"I know," she said quickly. "I just don't get compliments like that," she admitted looking down to the floor.

"Why on earth not?" he asked, almost appalled at the thought of her never getting complimented, it was such a simple thing that he had just assumed that she got them all the time.

"It's not like I go around fishing for compliments or anything."

"One does not have to look for them to get them though."

"True, but I just never get them like other people."

Gaara thought for a moment, his little game of seeing how far he could push her was getting quite interesting indeed. A woman such as her deserved to be praised at her hard work and perseverance. It was a given that she had mastered her skill and learned her trade with expert precision, such determination and success deserved praise, but never getting it, when she was her? It seemed almost unheard of.

"Well you know," he said quietly. "I always thought that you were one who deserved to be praised and looked up to."

Sakura thought for a moment. "Really?" she asked quietly, almost as it she didn't fully believe the words that he spoke.

"Of course. You deserve respect, but," he thought of how she had accused the Uchiha when he had first arrived. "I think you don't get as much as you deserve."

"Thank you Gaara," she said sincerely. "No ones ever said that to me before."

Gaara finally let go of her hands, but couldn't help but hide his smile when she hesitated in taking them away from his. "It's my pleasure Sakura, the least I could do for your hospitality. I'm sure that the men in your life have it very nicely with you."

Sakura laughed. "Oh are kidding me? I haven't had a boyfriend in two years, I've been far too busy with the hospital and teaching classes to concentrate on guys."

Gaara thought for a moment and mumbled to himself. "Hm...interesting."

Sakrua looked at the clock hours later. It was one in the morning and the rain had finally stopped. Gaara's temporary house while in the village for the next day was on the other side of the town. It would be a long walk in the after rain chill. Gaara went to put on his coat as Sakura leaned against the edge of the kitchen counter with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Thank you for your hospitality Sakura," he said as he walked up to her.

"And thank you for your company." Her voice was sweet, honest, and light.

"You know I meant everything I said right? You do deserve more then you get."

"Thank you Gaara. That really means a lot."

"You know, there are others out there that can give you what you deserve. And some, even more then that." He eyed her with temptation, the small voice in the back of his head left over by the Shukaku whispering things to him that he was finding rather...intoxicating at the moment.

"Oh I'm sure there are," she agreed lightly, unaware of his darkening gaze. "After all, I am one hell of a catch."

"That you are," he said in a low voice as a smirk crept across his features. Sakura froze at his devilish grin. Something inside her snapped to life and her body energized with heat and adrenaline. He took a step closer, dropping his jacket to the floor. Sakura, for lack of a better thing to do, backed up until her back was flush against the wall.

"Gaara?" Her voice came out shaky and unsure. Fearful yet excited all at the same time. It stirred his inner beast in a way that reminded him of his younger years, yet the outcomes he wanted were far different from back then. He was the all mighty Kazekage and she was just a doctor. Who was she to deny him?

He moved closer until he could easily touch her chin with the tips of his fingers, tilting her head up to look him in the eyes. His voice came out smooth and dark. "You know those people that can give you everything?" She nodded. His smirk grew more sinister. "You know I am one of those people right?" His eyes were boring deep into her mind, forcing her to answer truthfully. Reluctantly, she nodded again.

He wound his fingers through her hair and drew her close. Their lips touched delicately. Sakura felt her resistance snap, and Gaara felt his control crumble. She wrapped her arms around his neck to keep him close and and he wound his arm around her lower back to press her flush against him. He moved his lips over hers and she complied to his wishes without a seconded thought. Heat flooded her body as she pulled him closer to her, threading her fingers through his thick crimson locks. His finger made their way skillfully under her shirt and it was off of her before she could contemplate what was happening. She too, desperate to once again see the sight of his bare chest awkwardly tried to take off his shirt, her nervous shaking hands not able to get a good grip on the fabric. Gaara caught her hands in his and brought them up to his lips. Kissing her knuckles gently he looked at her, their eyes locking and her heart stopping dead in her chest. He removed his shirt and held her close to him again.

She felt like she was melting to him, like her body was dangerously close to just becoming a part of him. He picked her up and placed her on her counter. He pulled back from their kiss, much to her displeasure, and looked her in the eyes with a feline grin and dark eyes.

"I think I'll just stay the night here." He kissed her quickly. She melted. "Is that okay with you Miss Haruno?"

"Yes," she breathed. "Just don't, please, don't go." She wrapped her legs around him and drew him closer to kiss her once again.

"Never."

Sakura blushed furiously. Her head laid against Gaara's chest as he stroked her hair in content. Running his hands over the smooth skin on her shoulders and lower back he stared lazily up at the ceiling. A frown graced his lips when Sakura moved and shifted uncomfortably next to him. He held her in place firmly, intent on not letting her get too far away.

"Stop moving." His voice was meant to be stern, but came out lazy and tired.

"Gaara?" she asked quietly. He peered over at her as his response. "Um, I'm not your first am I?" she asked shyly as she looked away, the question too embarrassing for her to look him in the eyes.

Gaara snickered quietly. "No, you aren't my first Sakura. Am I your first though?" he asked with a playful inflection.

Sakura stirred and nodded. "Yes. And that's all your fault." Gaara could hear the let down in her voice as she spoke. He sighed and settled in closer to her to explain a few things that would hopefully be to her liking.

"Sakura," he began with a sigh. "There comes a point in a mans life where if he doesn't get something, his body will basically turn on him and make his life a living hell. Yes, I have had sex before, yes, I done it with more then one woman, and yes, I very much enjoy it. I don't know one man who in his right man that wouldn't agree with that. But that doesn't mean that I used you in any way."

"Oh I know that," she said with a small nervous laugh. "I just never thought I would, you know, have my first time like this..."

"Like what? Out of the blue like that? I think that's what makes it fun, and it's not like you didn't enjoy it," he said with a challenging grin.

"It's not like that!"

"I thought you liked spontaneity."

"Not like that..."

"Well then it's not spontaneous." His answer was short, and to the point, but his grin told her that he was only playing with her. She let a smile creep across her face. "I am however, very glad that we didn't have to share this wonderful moment with your, uh, roommate still here."

Sakura sighed and looked to the wall with a scowl on her lips. "I don't think he would have let this happen..."

"Hm?" Gaara asked surprised as he looked at her with a quizzing expression. "And why not? It's your house and your life, he has no say in what goes on with you."

"Yes well, with him being my teammate and older then me he likes to think he does," she mumbled grimly. His protectiveness and his demands had been wearing thin with her and she was more then thankful for a break.

"Well..." Gaara stared at the ceiling in thought. "You know, you could always come back to Suna with me," he suggested quietly, not looking at her when he asked, but staring off into the distance as if he himself were uneasy about the words he was saying.

"Gaara?" she questioned in disbelief after the initial shock of his request wore off. "Are you serious?"

"Yes." He looked back at her and brushed some stray hair behind her ears. "I am serious."

"But," she stuttered to find the proper words in such a moment. "But why?"

Gaara breathed a sigh and rubbed his eyes. "Because, I don't know, it just feels right, the thought of having you around all the time is very appealing to me. I like the idea of you living at my house, you always being with me, I think it looks right, like that's how I'm supposed to look."

"Did you just start thinking all of this now?"

"Oh God now." He laughed a little a cracked a half smile. "You actually think I was so blind as to come to the forest during the season of fall rains? In what I was wearing?"

"Well you did, so yes," she answered flatly.

"I porpously dressed like that knowing I would get caught in a rainstorm and need shelter. I could have gone to any other hotel besides my own and they would have been more then happy to give me a room, but I knew that you would let me stay here as well."

"Wait a minute!" she exclaimed as she shot up and took the sheets with her to cover herself as she sat up in the bed. "Did you con me into sleeping with you by making me feel sorry for you?"

"No, that's not it at all." He sat up too and tried to explain himself through her temper. "I merely gave myself an excuse to have you give me hospitality. I had no intention of doing anything with you when I arrived. Ideas yes, but my intentions very honorable. I just wanted to see you. And when I saw that Sasuke was here, well, even my thoughts were crushed. But then when you kicked him out I couldn't help but try and have something with you. It was far too wonderful an opportunity t pass up. Please Sakura," he begged as she started to inch farther away from him. He grabbed he hand and looked her strait in the eyes. "Please understand that I did not use you. What we did was very much a blessing for you to have bestowed on me."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick you out of my house and never step foot in your country again!" she demanded as she felt her temper rise. His compliments were touching, yes, but the idea that she even might have been used, given over the most valuable thing, and let a man see her in her most vulnerable state just because he played the pity card was unnerving and irritating to think she had fallen for.

"Because it was different with you." His words were soft and true in their meaning. They caused her to lose her stiffness a little and let her mind clear to hear them with more truth.

"What?" she whispered as she leaned ever so slightly closer.

"With you, what we did, was different," he said again, this time with more assurance and a stronger truth behind his voice.

Sakura looked down and stared at the large hand that held hers. The calluses brought about by controlling his hard and unforgiving element contracted nicely to the softness on the skin on the top of her hand. She could almost feel the power of control emit from his hand, she could almost see the dirt and fine grains of sand, so small they were almost invisible, lay on the sheets from his hair, the smell of the hot desert breeze still clung to him through the cleansing of the shower and the downpour of the icy rain. She bit her lips as a shiver went through her body at the thought of a person, a mere man, being so close and at one with the land he had come to control.

"Why?" she breathed quietly. "What would make me so different?"

Gaara paused for a moment, wanting his words to hit home in her heart, wanting then to leave such a mark on her that she could never forget it. Finding his words he swallowed, not used to saying such things, and spoke in all the truth he could muster. "Because with the others, it felt like something I just did. I didn't think about it, I didn't worry if they liked it or not, I didn't have the need to make them feel as I did. I didn't even feel like it had meant anything like everyone claims it dose. But with you," he looked up at her and locked eyes with her. "With you it felt something I didn't have a choice in, if I didn't get to have you in some way it was like I could never be whole again. I thought about everything I did to you, and I constantly needed your approval in what I was doing, I needed to know that you were feeling the same as I was." Sakura blushed and looked away the memory of their engagement. "With you," he continued as he lifted a hand to slide through her hair and bring her close. He rested a his forehead against hers and gripped her hand tighter. "With you if felt like it was truly my first time, like it was something different entirely."

Through her shaky and uneasy voice Sakura summoned the courage to ask him, ask him the one thing that she cared to hear. The one thing that would seal her fate with him. "Why is that?"

Gaara smiled. "Because, I love you Sakura. And I'm pretty damn sure that you wouldn't have done this with me if you didn't feel the same."

She couldn't help but smile at his words. She had tried to deny her feelings for him for years, but there was no hiding love. She nodded and bit her lips to hold back her grin. Joy blossomed in her heart as he kissed her forehead and pulled her to him. She embraced him with all the strength she could muster in her weakened state. The lite from the morning broke through the rain clouds as they cleared the sky and her home began to lite with the dawn of a new day. Gaara grinned as wave after wave of possibilities flooded his head.

"When can we leave then?" he asked lightly as he pulled back to look at her.

"Not for a while!" she exlaimed as she shot back. "There's more to me moving with you then just packing and leaving. I have to transfer hospitals and help tie up lose ends with paper work and tell everyone goodbye and make sure I know where things are in Suna so I don't get lost while your at work, and then we can start getting my things to your place!"

Gaara's smile faded and was replaced by a grim frown. "Geeze. Way to go and kill the mood," he grumbled.

Sakura gave him a scolding look and very motherly tilted head with a goo shake of her hair. "Now now, your a big boy and you can deal with it."

Once again he groaned fell back on the mattress and rubbed his eyes tiredly. "That sounds like way too much work. Can't you just leave and then tell everyone? Let's make things interesting, hm?"

"Oh no!" she said as she shook her finger at him. "There's much to do before we can even think about making things interesting. Now get dressed! I have to go talk to Lady Tsunade about getting me transferred after she hears the story." Sakura smiled and giggled. "She is definitely going to need a nice big glace of Sake to last through this one."

Gaara slide his pants over his hips as Sakura got dressed behind him. Rolling his eyes he scoffed. "Yeah, if I'm going to be helping you do this then so am I."

×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛× _**Chapter End**_ ×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×▬▬▬×愛×

_**Alright, well, that was kinda cheesy and gushy at the end, but I tried to end it on a funny and good note. I've been writing this one for a while and am very glad to finally have it completed. Tell me what you think everyone! **_

_**I can't wait tos tart updating more often again. I feel just awful that it has been almost a year now! You guys deserve better. Go and check out my song fics under Go back To Sleep, I have a new chapter there as well! I have another one shot that will be finished soon, third chapter to seeing double is going good and should be up in a little while, and festival days, well that ones got me good. I'll be sure to start the next soon, I think I got an entertaining thought in mind until it needs to get serious again.**_

_**Anyway. I love all of my readers! **_

_**R&R**_


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